Starting this week, representatives from over 190 countries have gathered in Geneva with one shared goal: to end the world’s growing plastic pollution crisis.
They’re here for a crucial round of negotiations on what could become the first global treaty to tackle plastic pollution. From the oil and gas used to make plastics, to how we dispose of the waste. This treaty, if finalized, could be as important as the Paris Agreement on climate change.
But getting everyone to agree won’t be easy.
The last time countries met in Busan, South Korea in December 2024, talks fell apart. Deep disagreements remain over key issues — especially whether the treaty should include limits on how much plastic the world produces, ban harmful chemicals, and get rid of certain plastic products altogether.
Some countries, particularly oil-rich nations, have drawn a firm line. They argue that capping production would hurt their economies and go beyond the original UN resolution made in Nairobi in 2022, which called for a treaty by the end of 2024.
On the other side, a group of “high ambition countries” like Rwanda, Peru, and Mexico are calling for bold action — including strict limits on plastic production.
India has taken a more cautious stance. It supports action on plastic pollution but opposes production limits and trade restrictions. “India is willing to engage on most of the issues, but has reservations and red lines on having no production cuts and trade barriers,” said Siddharth Ghanshyam Singh from the Centre for Science and Environment.
As the negotiations resume, the urgency is clear. A recent Lancet report warned that plastics are not just an environmental threat, they create a public health crisis, causing disease and death from infancy to old age. The health-related economic cost is over $1.5 trillion every year.
Plastic production has exploded in recent decades, from 234 million tonnes in 2000 to 460 million in 2019, and it could triple by 2060, according to The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OCED). Most of it is made from fossil fuels, adding to the climate crisis.
For many watching these talks, this is a once-in-a-generation chance to change the future.
The decisions made in Geneva over the next two weeks could shape the health of our planet and its people for the years to come.
